JP6552470B2 - Expansion device having means for preventing removal of pressurized gas container - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an inflatable device for inflatable articles, and particularly but not exclusively to an inflatable device for life jackets and the like.

  It is well known to provide a small gas cylinder in the expansion device for life jacket expansion devices that operate automatically when submerged and for many expansion devices that operate manually. The small gas cylinder is punctured in response to manual actuation or automatic actuation by touching the water to release pressurized gas for inflating the life jacket.

  While such expansion devices are generally reliable in use, there is the potential for new gas cylinders to be installed without the device being properly repaired.

  To address this issue, also ensure that the user does not accidentally use a life jacket with a used cylinder on the expansion device or no cylinder on the expansion device. In order to provide a so-called "state" indicator on the expansion device, it is well known.

  One example of an expansion device having a status indicator is the expansion device of US Patent Application 2003/0049981. This patent application describes an automatic expansion device having a cylinder adapter provided with a frangible collar and a mechanism that acts as a status indicator to determine if the collar has shattered. The disadvantage of this type of expansion device is that the expansion device is complex. A relatively expensive mechanism is needed to provide the required status indication and to verify that a fully filled gas cylinder is present.

  One object of the present invention is efficient and more economical the possibility of using the inflatable device for inflatable articles when the gas cylinder is not attached to the inflatable device or the used cylinder is attached to the inflatable device. It is to provide an improved inflation device that avoids the problem.

  According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided an inflation device for an inflatable article, said inflation device comprising a housing for supporting a container of pressurized fluid and supporting a perforation means, the perforation means comprising: The container is moveable from the retracted position to permit release of pressurized fluid, the container being contained within a protective casing, the casing being non-removably secured to the housing Thereby preventing removal of the pressurized fluid container.

  As used herein, the expression "removably secured" is designed such that the casing is removed from the housing during normal use or as part of any maintenance or repair operation. Used to mean not.

The casing and / or the housing ensure that the casing and / or the housing is permanently damaged so that the casing can not be fixed again to the housing if the casing is removed by improper operation It is preferred to be designed as such.

  At least one of the casing and the housing may allow visual inspection of the presence of the container within the casing. At least one of the casing and the housing can be at least partially transparent to allow visual inspection of the presence of the container within the casing. The casing is preferably at least partially transparent, and more preferably totally transparent.

  Visual inspection by providing an opening to allow viewing of the container within the casing, in addition to or as an alternative to the transparency feature to allow visual inspection of the presence of the container within the casing. It can be easy. At least one opening may be provided in one or each of the housing and the container, or at least one of the aforementioned openings may be defined between the casing and the housing. The opening may be an opening that allows for the drainage of water from between the casing and the container.

  The inflation device can include an indicator to indicate if the container, which is usually a cylinder, has been punctured manually or automatically. Thus, in contrast to the previously known devices intended to prevent being used with a used cylinder or trying to be used without a cylinder, the present invention According to this, it is sufficient for the inflation device to only comprise an indicator for indicating whether a manual or automatic actuation has been made. There is no need to provide an indicator for detecting whether a cylinder is present.

  The expansion device of the present invention can be referred to as a “disposable” expansion device. The expansion device of the present invention can also be described as being of the type having a container of "factory fitted" pressurized fluid.

  In addition to including a housing, a non-removable casing, and a container for pressurized fluid, the expansion device of the present invention usually further comprises an actuation mechanism, which is of a type well known per se It can also be an operating mechanism that is manual, automatic, or a combination of manual and automatic. One type of suitable mechanism is that of the subject matter of our European patent EP 1 1 017 717B. Another suitable mechanism is that of our co-pending UK patent application GB 1019087.4, entitled Inflation Device Mechanism.

  The inflation device can further include an outlet port of the type that adheres to the inflatable article, whereby, when actuated, the inflation device inflates a pressurized fluid, such as carbon dioxide, from the container through the outlet port. It can be supplied in the article. The outlet port of the inflation device and / or the inflatable article for use therewith are provided with selectively releasable holding means by which the inflation device can be easily secured to the inflatable article, and It is preferred that it be easily removed therefrom.

  The retaining means may be in the form of a clip comprising a pair of members actuated by biasing means such as a mechanical spring, whereby in use the members are biased and secured to the inflatable article Engage with the manifold retaining structure. In an alternative configuration, the expansion device may include the retention structure described above, and the clip may be supported by the manifold.

The protective casing can be fixed to the housing in a fluid-tight manner in a non-removable manner, thereby inhibiting water ingress into the casing. Alternatively, the cylinder casing may be secured to the housing in a non fluid tight manner. One or more drainage openings may also be provided to drain water between the casing and the pressurized container.

  The protective casing may be irremovably secured to the housing by an adhesive. Alternatively or additionally, the protective casing may be secured by mechanical means. Examples of suitable mechanical means include a plurality of resilient fingers carried by either the casing or the housing, which in the assembled state are provided by the other of the casing or the housing It engages with the contact part.

  Embodiments of the present invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a perspective view of an expansion device according to the present invention before final assembly. FIG. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing in more detail a portion of the device of FIG. 1 prior to final assembly. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a portion of the inflation device of FIG. 1 as viewed substantially opposite the direction of FIG. 2; It is a perspective view of the holding | maintenance apparatus of the expansion | swelling device of FIGS. 1-3. 1 is a perspective view of a manifold of an inflatable article. FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the retention device of FIG. 4 secured to the manifold of FIG. 5; FIG. 5 is a side view, partly in cross section, of a portion of an inflation device according to a second embodiment of the invention;

  An inflation device 10 (see FIGS. 1-3) suitable for selectively releasably securing to a manifold (not shown) of an inflatable article such as a life jacket or the like comprises a housing 11 having an outlet port 12. Including.

  The housing 11 is provided with a slot formation for guiding the retention device 13, which comprises a pair of spring mounted retention clips which can serve to engage the structure on the manifold , Whereby the inflation device is secured to the inflatable article in a selectively releasable manner. Thus, when secured to the manifold, pressurized gas can flow through the outlet port 12 into the inflatable article.

A fluid seal is provided in a conventional manner to ensure a fluid-tight connection between the expansion device 10 and the manifold.
The holding device 13 (see FIG. 4) includes two clips 30 each having a planar portion 31 formed to have a cut out contour. Each cut out profile has a pair of parallel guide surfaces 33 for engaging a guide pin 34 carried by the other of the two clips, and in use substantially as shown in FIG. Abutment edge region 35 for engaging the manifold when the two clips are in a first position relative to each other, and the holding device to the manifold when the two clips are in a second position relative to each other And an edge region 36 that is spaced apart enough to fit easily over the end of the.

  The two planar portions 31 are slidable relative to one another and by the action of a pair of compression springs 37 acting between the protrusions 38 of the clip, the first position as shown in FIG. It is urged to. The sliding movement due to the action of the two springs is limited by the engagement of the pin 34 with the abutment surface 39 at the end of each pair of guide surfaces 33.

In order to facilitate the movement of the two clips against the direction of the biasing force provided by the springs, and thus to move the abutment surfaces towards each other, each clip has an end region 40 provided with an opening. Have. A cutout region 41 is provided in one of the end regions 40, i.e., the end region 40 of the clip located below the flat portion of the other clip, as seen in FIG. As a result, the end of the other clip can slide freely through its notched area 41. For manufacturing convenience, the other upper clip can have the same shape and cutout area 41 can be provided in the same manner. The upwardly bent area 40 provides a convenient surface for the user to press and move the two clips to the second position for detachment from the manifold.

  In addition to the guidance provided by the pins 34, the two planar parts are prevented from separating by being located in the slot formations of the housing described above. Thus, the clips can slide relative to each other in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the housing 11.

  In use, to attach the expansion device 10 to the manifold 50 (see FIGS. 5 and 6), the clip end 40 is under the bias provided by the spring 38 so that the pair of edge regions 36 is aligned. Oppositely, they are pushed towards each other, which allows the clip and thus the expansion device to ride over the end 51 of the manifold. Then, when the housing contacts the shoulder area 52 of the manifold, releasing the end of the clip and rotating the housing relative to the manifold results in the abutting edge area 35 of the clip respectively being the tubular stem portion 55 of the manifold. It is possible to align and engage with a respective one of the grooves 53, 54 respectively extending around a part of the outer circumference of the.

  Housing 11 further includes an inlet port 14 to which carbon dioxide cylinder 15 is secured so as to form a seal therewith. The inlet port is surrounded by an array of at least three, in this case four, circumferentially uniformly spaced elastic fingers 18 having end abutments 19 for holding the cylinder casing 20. .

  The cylinder casing 20 is formed of a molded transparent material such as high impact polypropylene. The distal end 21 of the casing is closed (see FIG. 1). The other end 22 of the casing is open-ended and is provided with four circumferentially uniformly spaced slots 23 which each define an abutment surface 24 Co-operate with the outwardly directed abutment end 19 of each end of the four fingers 18 (see FIGS. 2 and 3). In the assembled state, the four abutment fingers prevent the subsequent removal of the casing (in other words separation).

  The housing includes a firing mechanism (not shown), which is actuated to pierce a seal (not shown) at the inner end of the gas cylinder 15, whereby pressurized carbon dioxide is applied. Can flow through the housing and through the outlet port 12 into the inflatable article to which the inflation device is secured.

The operation of the firing mechanism is due to a mechanism that realizes both automatic operation when the expansion device is submerged in water and manual operation when the toggle 26 is pulled.
The firing mechanism incorporates a type of indicator that provides a clear visual indication that the firing mechanism has been manually or automatically actuated. In this embodiment, this indication is provided by a plastic end cap 27 which is flush with the end of the housing before activation, but after activation, the end of the housing. Project from the part (as shown in FIG. 1). A lightweight spring can be provided in the housing to provide this protrusion during automatic actuation.

Thus, when the firing mechanism is activated, the moving position of the indicator cap 27 clearly and simply indicates that the expansion device needs to be removed and replaced as a complete unit. Because the gas cylinder is permanently fixed to the housing, the expansion device can not be reassembled using the used cylinder, and the transparency of the casing also eliminates the need for complicated detection mechanisms. A clear confirmation of the presence of the cylinder is provided.

  In the described embodiment, the provision of four, at least three fingers 18, in contrast to eg only one holding finger, prevents unauthorized removal of the casing 20. However, the outer surface of the casing end area 22 is provided with a thickened annular area as an additional protection against any fraudulent attempts to simultaneously push each of the four abutment ends 19 inward simultaneously. Can be shaped so that each of the slots 23 is covered by the casing material.

  In this described embodiment, the casing is secured by four fingers 18 that provide mechanical interlocking, but other forms of mechanical interlocking and / or adhesion may be used to prevent unauthorized removal of the casing. Understand what you can do.

  In a second embodiment of the invention (see FIG. 7), the expansion device 60 comprises a housing 61 in which a gas cylinder 62 is screwed, and the cylinder is protected, irremovably fixed to the housing 61 Are housed within the casing 63. Optionally, the casing 63 may be a totally or partially transparent material to allow visual confirmation of the presence of the cylinder 62 in the casing, but in this embodiment one or more A plurality of openings are provided for the visual inspection described above.

  The or each opening is either in the form of the opening 64 completely defined by the casing, or of the opening 65 defined by the skirt portion 66 of the housing, which is the portion surrounding the inner end of the container. It may be shaped or in the form of an opening 67 defined by the facing surfaces 68, 69 of the housing and the casing.

  The retention devices described herein can be used with the housing of other types of expansion devices, and also have particular applicability for use with expansion devices having automatic and manually actuated firing mechanisms. It is not something to be done.

Claims (15)

A disposable inflating device for an inflatable article, the inflating device comprising a housing for supporting a container of pressurized fluid and containing a piercing means, the piercing means being operated manually and automatically Can be moved from the retracted position so as to pierce the container by manual or automatic actuation to allow release of pressurized fluid, the container being contained within a protective casing, the casing being Non-removably secured to the housing, thereby preventing removal of the container of pressurized fluid, the expansion device further comprising:
A single indicator capable of indicating whether the container of pressurized fluid has been punctured in both manual and automatic actuation of the piercing means;
An outlet port for securing to the inflatable article,
By at least one of the casing and housing, Ri identifiable der present by visual inspection of the containers in the casing,
The container of pressurized fluid, Ru der irremovably from the housing, the expansion device. The inflation device according to claim 1 , wherein the protective casing is secured to the housing in a non-fluid tight manner. The expansion device according to claim 2 , comprising at least one drainage opening to allow drainage of water from between the casing and the container. The expansion device according to claim 1 , wherein the protective casing is secured to the housing in a fluid tight manner. The protective casing is undetachable secured to the housing by mechanical means, the expansion device according to any one of claims 1 to 4. The mechanical means includes a plurality of elastic fingers supported by either the casing or the housing, and the plurality of elastic fingers engages an abutment provided by the other of the casing and the housing. The inflation device according to claim 5 . The expansion device according to any one of claims 1 to 6 , wherein the protective casing is fixed to the housing in a non-removable manner with an adhesive. 8. The indicator according to any one of claims 1 to 7 , wherein the indicator is activated only to indicate whether the piercing means has been activated to penetrate the container and allow the release of pressurized fluid. An inflation device as described. Said outlet port of the expansion device comprises a holding means which can selectively disengaged, thereby fixing a said expansion device to the inflatable article can be removed from the inflatable article, Claims 1 to 8 An inflation device according to any one of the preceding claims. The inflation device according to claim 9 , wherein the holding means comprises a pair of members biased in a first direction by a mechanical spring. The casing is at least partially transparent, the expansion device according to any one of claims 1 to 10. It said housing is at least partially transparent, the expansion device according to any one of claims 1 to 11. It said casing defines an opening to allow confirmation of the presence in the visual inspection of the container within the casing, the expansion device according to any one of claims 1 to 12. It said housing comprising said opening in order that the presence of the container in the casing can be confirmed by visual inspection, the expansion device according to any one of claims 1 to 13. 15. The casing according to any one of claims 1 to 14 , wherein the casing and the housing define at least one opening between them to allow visual inspection of the presence of a container in the casing. Inflation device.

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